Tether Nets $10B Profit: A Waughian Take on the New Gold Rush

by

To the casual observer, the ledger of Tether reads like a brisk feuilleton in which prudence wears a dinner jacket. Profits march in, reserves tighten their belts, and the whole affair is conducted with a seriousness that would shame a parish tea.

Key Highlights

  • Tether made $10B in 2025 as USDT circulation hit $186B, showing strong growth despite a 23% profit drop from last year.
  • Tether now holds $141B in U.S. Treasuries and $24B in gold, highlighting a focus on safety, liquidity, and risk management.
  • USDT has 530M users globally, dominating stablecoins at 60.6%, and proves practical in markets like Nigeria, where Apple Pay struggles.

World’s largest stablecoin posted more than $10 billion in net profits for 2025, a neat flourish of commerce that would not have displeased the late Mr. Smear of the City, even as profit pirouettes down by 23% from the previous year. The issuer’s Treasury holdings touched record highs, a testament, one supposes, to a preference for the quiet life of government IOUs over the more riotous pleasures of the crypto theatre.

According to BDO, the accounting gentlemen, Tether remains in fine fettle and continues to dominate the global digital dollar market. The company’s chief, Paolo Ardoino, assures us that reserve management and shrewd investment decisions have been the steadying hands of this enterprise.

In 2025, Tether generated nearly $50 billion worth of new USDT, the second-largest annual issuance in its annals. Most of this grew in the second half, when $30 billion was added as demand for dollars rippled through emerging markets, digital payments, and crypto trading.

Consequently, USDT in circulation surpassed $186 billion, a record, while total reserves swelled to almost $193 billion-comfortably exceeding what is owed, a state of affairs few enterprises can claim with a straight face.

Record treasury exposure

Tether’s exposure to U.S. Treasuries reached unprecedented levels in 2025. Direct exposure to Treasuries surpassed $122 billion, with total direct and indirect exposure at $141.6 billion, thanks to overnight reverse repos and the like.

This makes Tether one of the largest private holders of U.S. government debt, a curious position in the global dollar markets. The company claims its priority is safety, liquidity, and orderly management, while USDT is used for trading, payments, and international transfers-like a well-behaved currency with a passport and a stricter curfew.

Tether also hoards gold and Bitcoin, with $17.4 billion in gold and $8.4 billion in Bitcoin. It has been buying up to two tons of physical gold each week, totalling more than $1 billion in purchases per month.

Ardoino noted, “It’s reasonable that we are going to have around 10% in Bitcoin and 10% to 15% in gold.” A diversified portfolio, or a man with a fancy tally-ho for risk, one might say, depending on how one reads the map.

Digital dollar growth and market reach

Tether’s USDT now has over 530 million users worldwide, making it the third-biggest cryptocurrency after Bitcoin and Ether, according to CoinMarketCap. The company invests more than $20 billion in AI, fintech, media, energy, agriculture, and digital asset companies-financed, one suspects, by profits and not merely the frontispiece of the back office.

DeFiliam data place the total market capitalization of all stablecoins at $305.8 billion, with USDT commanding 60.6%. A financial health display that, in the opinion of many, keeps the broader crypto show on the road.

Ardoino explained, “USD₮ expanded because global demand for dollars is increasingly moving outside traditional banking rails.” The disciplined management ensures USD₮ remains reliable even when demand reaches theatre quantities.

Meanwhile, Africa has become part of the stage. A video from the CEO shows internet sensation iShowSpeed using USDT for shopping in Nigeria, a demonstration that the new money meets old-world friction in a most public fashion.

iShowspeed shopping with USDT in Nigeria@ishowspeedsui

– Paolo Ardoino 🤖 (@paoloardoino) January 30, 2026

Yet, before the shopping could proceed, the shopkeeper asked whether Apple Pay would be accepted, only to be told no. A tiny comedy of modern finance: the cash equivalent arriving at a country where one of the world’s most popular payment systems is politely declined by a shopkeeper who knows a good deal when he sees it, and prefers the old rag-and-bone method.

Read More

2026-01-31 11:40